Promise Me
by whatever-the-reason-to-smile
Summary: Her muscles screeched in protest as she pushed her legs on. She forced her fatigued limbs to keep moving. She couldn't stop running. Not yet. R&R please! :)
1. Chapter 1

Her muscles screeched in protest as she pushed her legs on. She forced her fatigued limbs to keep moving. She couldn't stop running. Not yet. Her vision swam and she felt the blood roar deafeningly in her ears. She glanced back but saw nothing over the barren landscape except the dark peaks of the mansion she'd barely escaped. She saw no dark figures, no snarling dogs behind her, she saw nothing. She slowed slightly but knew she couldn't stop until she was completely sure. She couldn't risk it, for to risk catching her breath for an instant would be risking her life.

She was blinded by exhaustion and pain, his face etched in fire behind her eyes. She could see his steel grey eyes searing into hers as he had made her promise. She could feel the warm, crimson moisture spider webbing its way down her face and neck. She reached up to touch the cut running along her jaw line, from her ear to her chin, but regretted the action as soon as she felt the scorching pain. She knew it would leave a scar, reminding her of this day for the rest of her life.

She needed to hide, to find someone, anyone, who could help her. She had promised him she would leave but she couldn't just abandon him. How could he expect her to? She would not give up. If she could get the police, weapons and any people even. She searched her mind for more options but she knew that it would all be useless. These people were way above the police. She was sure they had contacts. Half of them were probably part of the police! No one would help her with this one. She would have to do this on her own.

The strangled scream echoed through the unwelcoming house. The cool stone walls and minimal furniture reflected the personality of their owner. Cruel and unfeeling. They waited in silence for the next shriek they both knew was coming but that they could not prevent.

He held her tightly, his arms wrapped around her waist, trying to protect her, to block out the cries coming from the room above. He would not let this happen to her. He would do anything. He would give up his own life for her, just so that she would not suffer their unchangeable fate.

Another shout was heard as he tightened his grip on her even more.

She finally slowed to a walk but did not stop. She could never be too far away from those... people. She called them people for not having a better word. After what they had done, and what she knew they were now still doing, no one would believe they were in any way humane.

Darkness was beginning to fall. How had it gotten so late? A shiver ran through her body, her bare arms covered in goose bumps. Her clothes, torn and dirty, were soaked in blood and sweat, which did not help to keep her warm.

There was something in the distance. A building. Was she imagining it? Was she so tired and desperate that she was becoming delirious? She couldn't tell but it didn't really matter to her anymore. It was her only hope, her only chance at saving him.

"You have to leave. You have to get away... without me. We won't both get out," he whispered, his voice filled with regret, thinking of a dream that now seemed so far away. It was of a happy, carefree life he had thought he could have with her. How wrong he had been. Life was never easy. It never went as planned.

"I... I can't," she stuttered, her voice breaking. Her body was overpowered by fear. This could not be happening. She couldn't even imagine a life without him. He was her life.

"You have to," he murmured softly. "Promise me. Promise me that no matter what happens... No matter what I do or say to you, promise me that you'll run. You won't let me stop you." He lifted her chin, forcing her eyes to meet his. "Promise me."

"I promise." She chocked out through the hot salty tears that had begun to trickle down her face.

They looked away from each others' tear stained faces to watch as a middle-aged man with greasy hair and a scowl that seemed to be permanently fixed on his face approached them. He grabbed them and led them, or rather dragged them, through endless identical corridors until at last, they reached an imposing black door. The man dropped them for a second to push open the heavy black door just a crack, just enough for him to snatch them back up and throw them in.

What she saw before her would scar her memory forever. The sight of the broken woman crumpled like a leaf in the corner of the room brought shivers through her body. She clutched his hand, feeling the warmth, trying to control her mind, trying to stop herself from blacking out right there and then. She had already made her promise and she couldn't back out now. He was risking his life for her and to back out now would mean that his efforts, his death, would be for no reason. Maybe if she could escape... Maybe there would be a chance she could save him. She new it was a long shot but at that moment, it was all that was keeping her from losing herself.

She broke into a run, wanting nothing more than to arrive at that building quickly. She ignored the pain that rocketed through her mind and body. She was getting closer now, she could see the building's form.

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	2. Chapter 2

She stumbled wearily across the threshold of the abandoned house, pushing aside the old unlocked door. She paused in the doorway, letting the silence stretch, to check for people, friends or enemies, before advancing into the house. She was alone. The relief of being safe, if only for a moment, led her to collapse in a dark comforting corner of a small cluttered room.

"Think!" her mind was screaming, "think!". But she was barely holding onto the edges of consciousness with the tips of her fingers, so was soon overpowered by a deep sleep as her mind went blank.

As she drifted between states of consciousness, she dreamed.

It started as heaven. She saw him, safe and happy, playing with a little blonde haired girl. They looked so free. She watched as he chased her through a field of daisies and buttercups, almost like a beautifully choreographed dance.

She watched from a distance as her perfect life continued before her eyes, but had a sudden desperate urge to join them. It was causing her actual physical pain not to be with them.

She lifted her bare foot to go towards them, but instead it felt like an invisible force was pulling it back to the ground. It took all her strength to move it forward and drop it back down a few inches in front of her. She could not understand what was wrong. This was meant to be her perfect family, yet she couldn't reach them!

She tried with even more strength to move another step, determined to be with them, but the irresistible force had grown even stronger, forcing her to stay. As she looked up, she noticed the scene in front of her had changed slightly. The sun was beginning to lower in the before cloudless sky, adding a crimson tinge to the whole place. The image of his mangled, lifeless body drenched in blood flashed before her eyes as she collapsed to the floor. But as she opened her eyes, it was forgotten as quickly as it had appeared.

Looking on at him and the girl, the picture turned sickly sweet, every colour slightly too bright, their faces slightly too beautiful, and their voices too sweet. She wanted to turn away, but her eyes stayed glued to them, her body frozen in place. Her perfect dream turning into her worst nightmare as a dark figure appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, grabbing the tiny girl's throat and slashing it with a knife.

She screamed. The figure turned to him now, her distress falling on deaf ears as a humoured smile stretched across his lips. She tried with all her strength to reach him, to save him. This couldn't be happening again. She felt her tears flood the ground and screamed again, but they heard nothing, as if she was imprisoned in a soundproof bubble.

The twisted nightmare continued as deep slashes appeared all over his body, blood streaming out, dying the ground a deep thick red. His face was blank while she was trapped by the silent torture.

Her final scream echoed in her head as the deathly cut went through his heart, his face, for a moment twisted into a mask of pain, before crumpling to the floor to lie in the pool of blood spreading around him.

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	3. Chapter 3

She awoke after what seemed like an eternity with the memory of the nightmare clear in her mind. How could she forget it? She knew she would not be able to forget it until he was there, holding her, reassuring her and lulling her to sleep. She would not be peaceful until he was safe.

She got up decisively, ready to go. She caught a glimpse of her reflection in the corner of a shattered grubby mirror. She could barely recognise herself. Her hair, usually light chocolate coloured and bushy, was dark and clung to her head, thick with blood and sweat from a few hours earlier. Her face and body were covered in shallow cuts and bruises, and dark shadows hung under her eyes. She looked deathly pale, like a corpse from an old horror movie. But it didn't matter. None of it mattered when he was still in danger.

It was now or never. She had to save him. She quickly excited the abandoned building, climbing over unrecognisable objects as she left. She started running in the direction of where she remembered the prison-like structure she hated so much to be, hoping deep inside that it had all been some kind of horrible nightmare. But as she retraced her footsteps, she knew it could never be that easy.

Suddenly, the realisation hit her. She had no idea what to do. She was running blindly back to the place she had barely escaped to try to overpower a whole building of the most dangerous people she had ever met. There was no chance of her ever escaping again if she got caught, let alone freeing him.

She forced her mind to stop thinking about the consequences. She knew going back was the only thing to do. There was no way she would ever stop regretting it if she didn't, and the sooner she went meant there was still a chance, the possibility of seeing his face one last time before the end.

She could clearly see the building now, it's towers illuminated by the moonlight, creating a stark contrast with the deep, dark shadows between them. She kept running through the eerie silence, her abused feet landing on the rough ground the only sound.

She didn't know how to get into the building, her memory blurred by tiredness and pain. Her tired eyes seemed to find a small dark wooden door on the side of the building. She approached it with a silent prayer for it to be unlocked.

She tentatively pushed it, and it have way to her, creaking quietly as it did. She thanked and cursed God at the same time; for letting her in to see him one last time, and for allowing her back into this terrifying place. She stepped in slowly, recognising the unforgiving stone, the high ceilings, and the feeling of dread from earlier that night.

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